David Richard Shireman was born on December 26, 1943 in Evansville, Indiana. His parents and sister preceded him in death. Dave died at home on January 12, 2016 due to pulmonary complications. David graduated high school in 1962, and at 17 years of age he joined the U.S. Navy, with his father's consent but unbeknownst to his mother. David wanted to be stationed "out west" and randomly picked Yuma, Arizona without knowing anything about the place. He was stationed at MCAS for the duration of his service time. He was an aviation mechanic but because of his typing ability he was pulled by his Chief to be his clerk. He was also in the Criminal Investigations Division, where one of his duties was to retrieve reports from the County Attorney's Office on military personnel who had violated civilian law. This is where he met his future wife, Tima, who was a secretary in that office. They married in June 1965, resided in Indiana for 2 years and returned to Yuma when he was offered a position of Police Officer with the Yuma Police Department in May, 1967. Dave started as a Patrolman and in 1969 he became the first Canine Officer when "Lucky" a German Shepherd was assigned to him. He was also the first Motorcycle Officer of the department, and was also Sergeant of the Patrol, Traffic and Investigations Divisions. He graduated from Arizona Western in 1973 and also became certified to teach law enforcement classes which he did for 1 year. In 1979, he was selected to attend The Southern Police Institute in Louisville, Kentucky where he successfully completed the Administrative Officers Course. Dave served as an AEA Credit Union Committee Member for 3 years and also served as a Board of Directors Member for 6 years. After leaving the Department in 1989, Dave became a self-employed water truck and belly dump provider to various contractors and trucking companies. He worked for Tommy Warnock Trucking for several years until 2007 when he could no longer perform the job due to medical reasons. Dave enjoyed family gatherings, and he and his wife and her sister Diane liked to go fishing and to the Sand Dunes before they became so restricted and regulated. He was a mentor to a couple of his nephews and was well respected by his friends. Dave was a man of his word, was honest, loyal, kind a caring person who did not hesitate to help you with whatever you needed. He had a sense of humor, was witty and could make a person feel at ease. Dave will be known for his distinctive voice, light blue denim shirt, boots, hat and his pride and joy, 2004 silver Chevrolet Silverado pick up. Surviving Dave are his loving wife of 50 years, Tima and Sister-In-Law Diane Perez, who was raised by Dave and Tima and was considered more of a daughter to them. Also surviving him are his brother-in-law, Gene Perez, sisters-in-law Rose Marie Mercado, Norma Reta (Cesar) and 6 nephews and 7 nieces. He will be missed by his wife, family and friends including Punk Beck who called him every single day, his nephew Shane Montoya, who called and visited regularly and who Dave had taken under his wing and lifetime friends Mike, Greg, Jerry and Dave. A Celebration of Life is scheduled for Saturday, January 30th, 2016 at 2:00-6:00 pm at the Fraternal Order of Eagles Hall, 225 1st Avenue, Yuma, Arizona.Please sign the guestbook at www.legacy.com.obituaries/yumasun